Norton Museum is Showing Off Recent Additions to its Collection by African American Contemporary Artists
The new acquisitions exhibition features Njideka Akunyili Crosby’s 2016 painting “Super Blue Omo.” THE NORTON MUSEUM OF ART is celebrating Black History Month by mounting an exhibition of recent acquisitions by black contemporary artists. “Spotlight: Recent Acquisitions” features eight works—recently executed paintings by Njideka Akunyili Crosby and Mickalene Thomas, photographs and a sculpture by...
John Akomfrah Wins Artes Mundi, UK’s Top Prize for International Contemporary Art
AFTER MAKING A SHORT LIST of six artists from around the world vying for the UK’s top prize for international contemporary artists, John Akomfrah has won the Artes Mundi 7. Exploring the historic arc of migration, Akomfrah’s work is particularly pertinent given the migration issues and refugee crisis—and surrounding humanitarian concerns and political...
Gordon Parks Foundation Awards Inaugural Fellowship to Photographer Devin Allen
April 25, 2015: Devin Allen’s image of a man running from a phalanx of Baltimore Police went viral and landed on the cover of Time magazine. | Photo by Devin Allen THE GORDON PARKS FOUNDATION is providing support to one of the most talented young black photographers to emerge in recent years. The foundation...
Google Begins Black History Month with Doodle Dedicated to African American Sculptor Edmonia Lewis
Sculptor Edmonia Lewis by Sophie Diao TODAY’S GOOGLE DOODLE celebrates artist Edmonia Lewis (1844?-1907). She is considered the first black woman to receive international recognition in the fine art world as a sculptor. The Feb. 1 tribute marks the beginning of Black History Month. The Google logo is executed in script with a painted...
For Monumental Commission at Hirshhorn Museum, Mark Bradford is Incorporating Figurative Imagery for First Time
An exterior view of the Hirshhorn Museum shows the cylindrical form of the building. | Courtesy Smithsonian Institution MORE THAN A YEAR AGO, in October 2015, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden announced Mark Bradford would be presenting his first-ever exhibition in Washington, D.C. The site-specific commission will utilize the entire expanse of the...
United States Artists Taps Baltimore-based Deana Haggag as President and CEO
Deana Haggag has been appointed president and CEO of United States Artists. UNITED STATES ARTISTS (USA) announced a new president and CEO. Deana Haggag, executive director of The Contemporary in Baltimore, has been tapped to lead the organization. USA provides support to American artists working across a range of disciplines through $50,000 fellowships. Haggag...
Crystal Bridges Museum Announces Acquisition of Harlem Portrait by Alice Neel
CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM of American Art is adding to its collection. The Bentonville, Ark., institution announced the acquisition of a 1964 painting by Alice Neel (1900-1984) that portrays actor and civil rights activist Hugh Hurd (1925-1995), who lived in Spanish Harlem. The museum told Culture Type the painting was acquired from David Zwirner Gallery...
College Art Association Paying Tribute to Kerry James Marshall and Faith Ringgold
Faith Ringgold and Kerry James Marshall are being honored by CAA. TWO AFRICAN AMERICAN ARTISTS are receiving the College Art Association’s top Awards of Distinction. CAA announced Kerry James Marshall is being honored with the 2017 CAA Artist Award for Distinguished Body of Work. The 2017 CAA Distinguished Artist Award for Lifetime Achievement...
Studio Museum in Harlem Hires Connie H. Choi as Associate Curator
CONNIE H. CHOI is joining the Studio Museum in Harlem as associate curator, permanent collection. In her new position, she is responsible for the strategic vision for the museum’s collection, a repository of more than 2,200 objects created between the 19th and 21st centuries. Her first day at the Studio Museum is Feb. 6. “We...
At Blanton Museum in Austin, Local Patrons ‘Crowdsource’ Historic Purchase
SONYA CLARK, “Madam C. J. Walker,” 2008 (combs). | Collection of Blanton Museum of Art THE BLANTON MUSEUM OF ART is reinstalling its permanent collection. When the second-floor gallery spaces reopen on Feb. 12, works by African American artists will be among the standout attractions. The collection exhibition features new acquisitions and holdings that...
Curator Rujeko Hockley is Joining the Whitney Museum
THE WHITNEY MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART announced the appointment of Rujeko Hockley as assistant curator. For the past four years she has been at the Brooklyn Museum where she is assistant curator of contemporary art. Hockley starts at The Whitney on March 6. “I am thrilled to be transitioning from one incredible world-class institution to...
Sondra Perry Wins 2017 Gwendolyn Knight and Jacob Lawrence Prize
FOR THE FIRST TIME in its short history, the Gwendolyn Knight and Jacob Lawrence Prize has been awarded to a video artist. The Seattle Art Museum (SAM) announced Sondra Perry is the winner of the 2017 prize. Based in New Jersey, Perry’s unique practice explores abstraction and representation through video, computer-based media, and performance....
Harvard Art Museums Name Makeda Best Curator of Photography
THE HARVARD ART MUSEUMS are welcoming back an alum. Makeda Best, who earned her M.A. and Ph.D. from Harvard University in the Department of History of Art and Architecture, has been tapped to serve as the new curator of photography at Harvard Art Museums. Previously, she was an assistant professor in visual studies at the...
Art Strike Calls for Cultural Institutions to Close on Inauguration Day to Combat Normalization of President-Elect
Embed from Getty Images This post has been updated. ARTISTS, CURATORS, AND CRITICS are planning an Art Strike on Inauguration Day. The J20 Art Strike calls for a day of “noncompliance,” no work, no school, no business. The organizers are entreating museums, galleries, theaters, concert halls, studios, nonprofits, and art schools to close...
In Advance of Presidential Inauguration, Artists & Activists are Raising Their Voices in Protest
Embed from Getty Images This post has been updated. THIS WEEK SHOULD BE INTERESTING. It opens today with a federal holiday dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr., a minister and nonviolent civil rights activist. His brave, radical and visionary campaigns changed U.S. laws—dismantling segregation and banning voter discrimination—and helped to advance human rights...
New Year, New Art: What to Look Forward to in 2017
IN THE COMING YEAR, 20 biennials and triennials are happening around the world. Documenta 14 is opening in Athens, Greece, and Kassel, Germany; the Whitney Biennial and Performa 17 are occurring in New York; and New Orleans is hosting Prospect.4. Meanwhile, artists are diversifying their practices and reaping the benefits of critical recognition. Mark Bradford...
Nasher Museum Announces Acquisition of ‘Hot Rhythm,’ a Major Painting by Archibald Motley
Mara Motley, M.D., and Valerie Gerrard Browne donated “Hot Rhythm” by Archibald Motley to the Nasher Museum of Art. WHEN ‘ARCHIBALD MOTLEY: JAZZ AGE MODERNIST’ opened at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University three years ago, one of the most compelling aspects of the exhibition was the presentation of a series of...
Culture Type: The Year in Black Art 2016
FROM THE MOMENT Kerry James Marshall’s 35-year survey exhibition opened at MCA Chicago this spring, the artist has been praised with honors, his work has been lauded in the media, and his message has resonated. His years-long mantra, that in order to push the Western canon of art history in a more diverse and representational...
Next: 18 Curators & Cultural Leaders to Watch Who Joined New Institutions in 2016
MANY CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS have finally come around to realizing that it is imperative that their boards, staff and programming reflect the communities they serve. Putting such measures into practice is another matter. A recent Mellon Foundation survey conducted with the Association of Art Museum Directors and the American Alliance of Museums found most museum staffs...
Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh Acquires New Kerry James Marshall Painting Depicting Single Female Figure
KERRY JAMES MARSHALL, “Untitled (Gallery),” 2016 (acrylic on PVC panel). | Carnegie Museum of Art, The Henry L. Hillman Fund, © Kerry James Marshall A FEW MONTHS AGO, the New York Times visited Kerry James Marshall in anticipation of “Mastry,” his 35-year survey opening at The Met Breuer on Oct. 25. The profile the...
